Sorcha
by hunni07
Summary: When Snape goes to Atlantis on business, the last thing he expects is to have to put up with the hot-tempered princess- Sorcha. It's a prequel to another fic, but you don't have to have read that one! Read and Review please! COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own anyone form the HP universe… they're all sadly J.K.Rowling's (well, not SADLY, seeing as without her… well, let's just not think like that… **shudder**) But Sorcha and her dad are MINE!!!!! (So is MY version of Atlantis and all the Atlantian peoples) Okiedokie? Yuperoo! We continue!

::AN:: This is a **PREQUEL** to my first fic, 'It All Depends On How You Fly The Broom' It's one of a kind-of-series of prequels that I'm working on… (If you've read the other fic, you'll get it after awhile…)

If you haven't read 'It All Depends On How You Fly The Broom' please do so as it will help you… and… yeah, read it anyway… for my sake? (lol) THIS IS MY LAST REVIEW UNTIL THE VERY END OF THE STORY!! (I promise! No more interruptions!! **Cheers madly**) -- Oh yea! And in this fic, you're expected to have, like, all knowledge of the HP books 1-5… I don't know if that really matters since I'll try and be as detailed as I can… but I just thought I'd let you know! _{Italics are thoughts!!!!!!}_

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"Don't do that!" The raven-haired girl shrieked.

"I'm sorry, dear." The middle-aged man said hesitantly. "My apologies, Sorcha."

Sorcha smiled and tucked a lock of her long, wild curls behind her ear. "Awe, don't worry about it, Albus. You just startled me is all. I didn't hear you come into the room."

Albus grinned. "Well, in that case, I'd say you don't hate me then!"

"Hate you?!" She exclaimed, taken aback. She then squinted her eyes and leaned forward. "Why…?" she questioned, "What did you do?"

Albus chuckled and ruffled the hair on the top of her head, causing the curls to stick up slightly over her jewel-embedded crown. "Nothing, little Sorcha." He replied. "It's just that I believe I may be too busy to spend much time with you over the duration of my stay."

Sorcha laughed and slapped his arm playfully. "Nonsense, Alby! I heard stepfather speaking with some of the servants and you're staying ALL YEAR! There's no hiding it now! I already know!" She grinned broadly and giggled.

Albus Dumbledore smiled at his young friend. Ever since his third cousin, Albert Dennison, had married the widowed queen of Atlantis, he had been a frequent visitor to the secret island. It was his second visit, almost sixteen years ago when he had met Albert's new stepdaughter Sorcha. She was barely three years old at the time and took an immediate liking to Albus, following him around the castle like a lost puppy. He didn't mind in the slightest, however, and had come to love Sorcha as though she was his own daughter over the years.

"Hellooooo!" Sorcha cried out, waving her hands in front of Albus's face and jumping up and down slightly. "Atlantis to Dumbledore!"

Albus smirked and patted Sorcha's head. "My apologies once more, little princess." He then sighed and clasped one of her hands. "As it so happens, I am not here this year on my own account. Rather, I am here on business and therefore will be otherwise engaged and unable to sojourn with you as I have in past stopovers."

Sorcha raised an eyebrow and frowned. "Yeah…" she said, "I don't know about you, but around here we speak a little language I like to call English." She smiled when Albus chuckled at her gag, then turned away from him, a deep frown forming on her delicate face. "So… You're saying that even though you're gonna be on the island, it'll be like you're not even here and you're not going to come and see me."

Albus sighed and pulled the teenager into a comforting hug. "I would like to believe that it's more complicated than that, Sorcha, but that would be lying." He pulled away and turned her to face him. "I'll visit you when I can, alright? It won't be often, but I will try."

Sorcha nodded and smiled. "That's okay, I guess." She pulled away and picked up a book on a nearby table, thrusting it into Albus's hands. "I'm supposed to busy this year, anyway!"

Albus glanced over the title of the book in his hands. _The Art of Potions and Potion-Making by Babble Jeeves. _"Aha!" He exclaimed as he handed the book back to her. "You're taking extra courses as I suggested?"

She nodded enthusiastically. "Of course! I know I'm horrible at making potions, but I figured I'd test out my worst subject first." She smirked. "Plus, it's the only thing I'm REALLY bad at."

Slapping her forehead, she sighed. "Oh no, I've done it again! Don't tell mother I've been bragging about my academics again! She'll have a fit! 'Boasting one's achievements in public company is not a trait fit for a ruler of any status.'" She said, mocking her mother's cold, squeaky voice.

Albus smiled sincerely. "I wouldn't dream of it." He said, laughing silently to himself at the exasperated nineteen-year-old before him. A thought struck him suddenly and his smile widened. "I have a proposition, if you're interested."

"Sure, enlighten me old man!" She jested.

"Along with myself, several of my colleagues are here as well. There are a few that are skilled in the art of potion-making, and I'm sure it would be no problem for them to tutor you a bit during their stay."

Sorcha squealed with happiness and hugged Albus once more. "Yes, yes, yes!" She cheered and did a clumsy version of the waltz with him for a few seconds around the room. Laughing, she pulled away and squealed again, clasping her hands together happily. "You're the greatest, Albus!"

He smiled and was about to say that he appreciated her compliment, when a knock came from the other side of the door. Sorcha grinned and ran to the door, flinging it open.

She turned back around to face Albus. "See ya later, Albus!" She said, grabbing her book off the table and walking back to the door. "I must pamper and beautify myself for the feast in which we will welcome you and the friends you have brought with you!" She said dramatically, waving her hand in a snobby fashion. She then burst out laughing and grinned like a madwoman. "Mother's orders, you understand." And with that she bounced out of the room, closed the door behind her, and skipped down the corridor.

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"Sorcha! Quit dawdling and get in here!" Her mother ordered, shoving her daughter towards the Dining Hall doors.

Sorcha regained her balance quickly and turned around to face her mother. "Argh! Don't push me, it's hard enough to walk in these wretched shoes as it is!"

"Your Majesty!" A servant cried, rushing down the hall to greet them, bowing curtly to Sorcha before turning to the queen. "Dinner is served and the guests are waiting with the king, ma'am!"

The queen smiled and gestured for the panting servant to open the Dining Hall doors. When he did, she turned back to him and dropped six gold coins into his palm. "Thank you, Warren. You're dismissed."

Warren grinned happily at the gold and bowed frantically as the queen turned away, stepping into the Dining Hall. He then giggled and stuck his tongue out at Sorcha. "It's some kind of foreign food." He whispered to her quietly so that her mother wouldn't hear. "It smells horrid and we had to put a charm on it to make it smell like apples. I can't even begin to imagine how it must taste… Good luck!"

Sorcha wrinkled her nose and shuddered. "Can you stop off in the kitchens and ask the cooks to save me some real food?" she whispered just as quietly. Warren nodded vigorously and mouthed the words 'See you later' before he ran around the corner and out of sight.

"Sorcha!" The queen hissed threateningly.

Sorcha rolled her eyes and then patted down her elaborately decorated gown. "I'm coming, mother." She muttered.

Walking slowly into the Dining Hall, Sorcha cursed silently as the pain in her feet increased. _I'm not going to be able to walk tomorrow! _She thought, and blew a few curls out of her eyes. _Agh! Look at my hair, people! It's like a big black beehive! 'Fashionable'… sure…When I can't get a brush through it later, that'll be real nice… Something to tell the grandchildren about…More like WARN them about… _Shrugging and stifling a laugh, she glanced up to see that the occupants of the long table ahead of her were beginning to stand, each bowing politely and smiling. _Fake smiles. _Sorcha gathered. _They're just like everyone else. Smiling politely because they're in the company of someone with a lot of wealth and power. If I was an old, poor, unknown spinster, they wouldn' t give me a passing glance._

"My wife and daughter, gentlemen!" Her Albert Dennison's loud voice boomed throughout the hall and Sorcha groaned inwardly when she realized that she and her mother were the only females in the room. _And I was preparing myself for talk of parties and hair. _She thought grumpily. _Now what am I supposed to talk about? Politics? Blech! _

"Riona," Albert said, smiling broadly at his wife as she sat down next to him to the right. Sorcha sighed when she realized that the only available seat left was at the opposite end of the table as her stepfather. _Alone at the end. Just dandy!_ She thought. "Sorcha, please do us the honor of welcoming our guests." Albert suggested as he sat back down.

Sorcha stood behind her chair and tapped the back nervously. She nodded to her mother and stepfather. _Dying. I am dying. Going to die. Right here! _She searched frantically for Albus, and he smiled encouragingly at her from his third cousin's left. _Thanks, Alby. But you could've picked a seat a little closer…_ She cleared her throat and forced a smile, hoping it looked authentic.

"Welcome to Atlantis!" she said calmly and felt her smile slowly diminishing. "Um, I hope you like the food…" She thought of what Warren had warned her of seconds earlier. _The smelly, foreign food._ "I didn't make it." She added hastily as chuckles rose from around the table. _Yeah, well… You won't be laughing after you take a bite!_

She blushed and silently reprimanded herself for forgetting every word her mother had told her to say. "Um… Atlantis is… pretty. I hope you… enjoy your stay… maybe?" _That's it! Die! Die! Die!_

"That's all for now." Albert said, motioning for her to sit down as he turned to his guests. "Forgive Sorcha. She isn't much for… Well, she isn't much for anything." He smiled contentedly as his guest chuckled once more.

Sorcha sat down quickly unable to fake a smile. _Yeah, real funny… NOT! _She stopped herself from rolling her eyes by picking up her salad fork and twirling it around in her fingers. "Dig in!" She heard Albert say. His voice seemed a million miles away.

Glancing around the table, she saw the men start to eat the food. _Wait for it… Wait for it… _It was a pale, young boy who appeared about her age who was the first. _Yup, there it is! _She watched as the boy's face contorted in disgust and then as he quickly regained his composure, glancing around frantically to make sure no one had seen him. He noticed Sorcha staring and his brow furrowed nervously.

Sorcha leaned towards him defiantly and whispered, "I didn't make it. I promise."

He scowled and turned his attention back to his plate. _Um, this is the part where you laugh! _Sorcha thought, a frown forming on her face. _Just because Albert was rude doesn't mean you have to be too, you greasy git._

She leaned towards him again and tapped her fork on the edge of his plate. He glanced up, expressionless and she smiled. "You're English?" She asked. _Oops. Supposed to ask for name first. THEN nationality, occupation, and so on… _She remembered her Decorum and Etiquette lessons from when she was younger.

The boy nodded and Sorcha smiled. _Whatever. He was rude, so screw etiquette._ "So, how do you know Albus?" She asked, placing her fork back in its place.

"School." Was his only reply.

She nodded. "Oh, yeah! He's headmaster of that… school. Pigblister, right?"

He snorted and dropped his fork, causing a few of the other guests to glance at him briefly before scowling and turning their attention back to the king and queen. The boy smirked and turned back to Sorcha. "It's Hogwarts."

She giggled. "Same thing." She paused and twirled her hair around her finger. "Kind of."

"Pssst! Pssst!" Sorcha heard from behind her. She looked at the black-haired boy, who was staring at something behind her and turned around in her chair. The sight before her made her want to burst into fits of hysterical laughter, but instead she covered her hand over her mouth in a desperate attempt to silence her sniggering.

Standing just inside the grand Dining Hall doors, stood Warren, soaked from head to foot in mud. Sorcha checked to make sure that her mother and stepfather weren't paying the slightest bit of attention before she turned back to Albus's strange friend. "Cover for me, will ya?" She asked and nodded towards her parent's direction and back at Warren's direction before winking at him. "I'll only be a minute."

With that, she stood up silently and tiptoed to the door, ducking out of the room and shoving Warren out into the corridor as she went. Making sure that the door was open enough so that it wouldn't slide shut, and closed enough to not cause any unnecessary attention, Sorcha turned to her servant and grinned. "You went off to have a mud fight without me? How DARE you!" She said sarcastically, still smiling.

Warren smiled lopsidedly. "You HAD to go to that welcoming dinner…" he explained. "So, the rest of us decided to have some fun while you got all chummy with the out-of-towners."

"Chummy?!" She hissed, trying to keep her voice down. "The only person I've talked to is that boy sitting next to me, and let me tell you, trying to keep up a conversation with him is like trying to push a lion off a diving board! It just won't budge!"

"Well maybe if you didn't act so spoiled, Sorcha." He suggested. "I'm sure that not all of your new house-mates are as well-off as you."

Sorcha gasped, taken aback. "I am not spoiled!" She paused, pondering her words. "Well, okay, I am. But what would you expect? I'm a princess! Besides, it's not like I act spoiled. You should know that by now, Warren."

Warren shrugged casually. "I was just kidding, Sorcha." He said and stepped towards her. "Hug on it?"

Sorcha leaped back and shrieked in disgust. "Go take a bath, Warren!" She commanded, laughing and shooing him away. After she saw him turn the corner again, she went back inside the Dining Hall.

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Severus Snape had heard of Atlantis. He had never been there, though, seeing as how up until six months ago he hadn't even believed that such a place actually existed. Somehow, he had ended up making alliances with Albus Dumbledore over the past year. Thus, he was invited to accompany his former headmaster, along with several other men, to the secluded island of Atlantis. _For the entire year._ He thought to himself. _I won't see England again for another YEAR._ The thought didn't bother him as much as he had assumed it would, and he shook his head, trying to clear his mind.

I'm so hungry. He thought grumpily and surveyed the room around him. The "Dining Hall," or so King Albert had called it. There was already food on all the plates, but no one was permitted to eat yet. They seemed to be waiting for something. _Oh, that's right. I remember Dumbledore saying something about how it's custom for the women here to show up last to dinner. … Weird people._

He heard the tall doors open and turned towards them to see a short, adolescent boy in the servant's garments _(A fading gray, collared shirt and black slacks. How degrading.)_ bow to the occupants of the room and then turn around and exit back into the hallway. _Was he bowing at us? At all of us?_ Seconds later, a tall, elegant woman with a billowing red dress and perfectly flowing auburn curls tied up in a fashionable knot. _Pretty, but her face is tight. She must be at least forty._

He noticed that the tall woman turned her head back towards the hallway for a moment and mouthed something before stepping forward, smiling broadly to reveal brilliantly white teeth. Just seconds later, walked in the princess. _She's got to be the princess. Younger-looking than the other woman... can't be more than nineteen… And she's exactly as Dumbledore described her… Average-height, long, curly black hair, blue eyes, and… _Severus concealed a smirk as the girl staggered suddenly, a look of utter pain on her face, then roll her eyes and angrily blow a few loose curls out of her face. _… And clumsy._

Severus bowed along with the rest of the men as King Albert introduced the latest editions to the party. "My wife and daughter, gentlemen." He said happily. "Riona," he nodded at his wife as she sat down. He took his seat as well and the Severus sat down along with the rest of the men. "Sorcha," he heard the king say, "please do us the honor of welcoming our guests."

The princess, Sorcha, stood behind the only available seat. _Great, I get stuck sitting next to the klutzy little brat who's having a mood… _Severus thought and looked over at her.

She tapped the back of the chair and smiled. _Fake smile._ He gathered. _She doesn't want to be here. She'd probably rather be pampering her unflawed face and gossiping about the newest fashions._ "Welcome to Atlantis!" She said calmly. _Her voice is too soft._ "Um, I hope you like the food…" she trailed off. Her eyes widened suddenly as though she had just remembered something important. "I didn't make it!" She added quickly. Severus chuckled along with the rest of the room, but he stopped abruptly when he noticed a different emotion flicker in Sorcha's eyes. _What was that? Sadness? Defiance? Oh no, she's probably poisoned the food._ Severus erased that last thought from his mind, reassuring himself that, as Dumbledore's relative, Albert wouldn't kill any of them. "Um," The princess continued. "Atlantis is… pretty. I hope you… enjoy your stay… maybe?" _Has she NEVER made a speech before?!_

"That's all for now." King Albert said, motioned for his stepdaughter to sit down, and then turned towards Dumbledore and the rest of his guests. "Forgive Sorcha. She isn't much for… Well, she isn't much for anything." The men chuckled once more.

Severus, however, stayed silent, looking at Sorcha out of the corner of his eye and watched her as she sat down. _She doesn't seem to think it's as funny as everyone else does._ He turned away completely as she picked up on of the many forks next to her plate and start twirling it in her hand with a bored look on her face. As soon as he heard Albert say, "Dig in," Severus began eating.

It only took three seconds for him to realize that he had never tasted anything so vile and foul in his entire life. He swallowed quickly and tried to appear calm, as though he hadn't just eaten a crude fare. Glancing about, he wondered if anyone had seen his short moment of repulsion, when his eyes landed on Sorcha. _Of course. Leave it up to the spoiled little princess to notice everything. She'll most likely hold it over my head all year long._

"I didn't make it." She said, leaning towards him. "I promise."

Severus scowled and looked down at his plate. _Yes. Over my head. All year._ It was only when he noticed a fork not belonging to him tapping on the edge of his plate that he looked back up, only to find Sorcha the owner of said fork. _She's torturing me. She probably is taking pleasure in all this. She'll probably start asking annoying questions soon._ "You're English?" She asked. _So predictable._ He nodded, noticing that she was smiling. _She has a nice smile… Wait. She's probably laughing at me right now. Typical._

"So, how do you know Albus?" She asked, putting her fork back down next to her plate.

"School." Severus replied simply. _Maybe if I give her boring, one-word answers she'll leave me alone._

"Oh, yeah!" She said, nodding. "He's headmaster of that… school. Pigblister, right?"

Severus dropped his fork and tried to hold back his laugh, which only led to a snort. He noticed that a few of the other men turned to glare at him disapprovingly before turning their attention back to the king and queen. He smirked and looked Sorcha in the eye. _Her eyes are really… blue._ "It's Hogwarts." He corrected her. _Somehow I'm getting the impression that she already knew that, though._

"Same thing." She replied, giggling and twirling a lock of her hair around her finger. "Kind of." _Maybe she won't be too horrible. At least she's pretending to be friendly._

"Pssst!" He heard coming from the direction of the door. Glancing up, he saw the same servant boy as before, standing just inside the Dining Hall. He was covered in mud and was trying desperately to get Sorcha's attention in the quietest way possible. "Pssst!" he hissed again.

The princess turned around in her chair and covered her mouth with her hand. _She's probably horrified. Maybe she's never even seen a person covered in mud before. Wow. Maybe she's never seen mud before._ He noticed that he shoulders were beginning to shake. _Is she crying?! No… She's… laughing!_

Severus saw her glance in the king and queen's direction and then turn to him. "Cover for me will, ya?" _Um, how about, no?_ "I'll only be a minute." She said and then rushed out of the room.

Well, this is just great. Severus thought to himself as he watched Sorcha leave the room. _Let's hope no one notices._

"Where is she going?" Albert's voice could be heard from across the room. "Sorcha? Where are you going?"

Of course… This HAS to happen. Severus thought and blinked slowly. "Warren." He heard Dumbledore's voice. "Mud." _Thank you, thank you, thank you._

Suddenly, a loud shriek could be heard from outside the room, causing everyone to stop talking and turn towards the door. "Go take a bath, Warren!" Sorcha's voice could be heard, followed by laughing.

The Dining Hall doors opened all the way and Sorcha stepped through, still smiling. Her smile vanished in seconds and turned into a small "O" shape. She quickly sat down and mumbled, "Sorry," before her stepfather cleared his throat.

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Don't lecture me now… You have guests… It'll only make you look mean… I think. Sorcha thought to herself as she heard Albert clear his throat. _I said I was sorry… Maybe he didn't hear me… Should I say it again?_

"Sorcha," Albert began sternly, "You didn't even dismiss yourself, and then you had the indecency to disrupt our well-enjoyed meal by conversing with the hired help vociferously." Sorcha flinched as he continued. "Stand up and apologize to our guests." He ordered.

No! "Yes, sir." She mumbled and stood up. _What do I say?_ "Um…" she trailed off, looking from her mother to Albus for support. Her mother's eyes seemed fixated on a faint object on her dish and Albus stared at her blankly. _Gee, thanks guys._

"Sorcha, this isn't the first time you've interrupted our dinner lately. It's upsetting to see that you've completely disregarded everything your mother and I have taught you." Albert scolded.

Everything you've taught me?! What would you know of teaching? You're a king! You didn't even know I had taken etiquette classes until just over a year ago! Sorcha's temper flared and she clenched her fists at her sides to stop herself from exploding. _Maybe if I just stand here and don't say anything he'll give this up after awhile._

"We'll sit here all night if that's what it takes." He said, taking a sip of wine. "And when we all of the servants are drowsy from lack of sleep tomorrow, you will fill their duties."

Sorcha couldn't hold it in any longer. "Oh COME ON!" Her stepfather raised his thick eyebrows and opened his mouth to speak, but Sorcha wouldn't let him. "We wouldn't even be having this discussion if you weren't so uptight! So I went out into the hall to talk to Warren! Would you rather me have invited him to join us? HE WAS COVERED IN MUD!"

"Sorcha Edan, you-" The king began.

"Yeah! That's right!" Sorcha interrupted. "I am an Edan! And I don't care if you're a king, you're still a Dennison! I don't have to put up with you and your silly dinners!" She waved her hand around the table. "I don't even know these people! You don't even know the half of them! And it's not like I wish to be here, in this too-fancy dress, and these too-small shoes that I can't walk in, and this hair!" She pointed to her hair. "Alert the exterminator! There's a small infestation of bugs growing around in here! They can't tell the difference between their real home and this, this, HIVE! I'M A HUMAN BUG NEST!"

"Go to your quarters!" Albert shouted, standing up and pointing to the door.

"Thank you!" Sorcha shouted back and threw her sparkling crown onto her plate. She took a deep breath and blinked slowly. _Count to ten. One… Two… ARGH! Not working!_ "Goodnight mother, Albus." She said politely, nodding to them. She then turned to the oily-haired boy and nodded. "Goodnight." She glanced around at the other guests. "Goodnight."

"GO!" Albert bellowed.

Sorcha rolled her eyes and turned sharply on her heel, leaving the room in a huff.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Belongs to J.K Rowling and Warner Bros. And whomever else it happens to actually belong to… I'm not an owner… just a user… (Yay… ish)

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He makes me SO mad! Sorcha thought while she angrily shoved on a pair of black jeans. She slipped off the dinner dress and slipped on a forest green tank top. _That's better…_

"Are you done changing yet?" She heard Warren ask from underneath her comforter.

"Yes." She replied as she desperately tried to force her wild curls into a neat braid. "You can come out from under the covers."

Without turning around to face him, she watched Warren in the mirror. He threw the red blanket off of him and flopped down on his back to gaze at the ceiling, letting out a deep breath. _And I'M weird… Well, at least he bathed…_

After making sure her hair was out of her face, Sorcha skipped over to her bed and paused just before her knees touched the edge, grinning at her best friend. Warren glanced up at her and frowned. "What?" he asked.

"You got me in trouble." She said sarcastically, as though he should've already known. She watched gleefully as Warren's eyes squinted in meditation and then almost immediately widened in realization.

In one leap, Sorcha jumped onto her bed, landing hard on top of him and laughing all the way. "Geroff!" He protested, swatting her leg playfully as she pinched his arm.

Sorcha loved "fighting" with Warren. He was one of the only people she fought with who ever fought back, though. His theory was that since Sorcha was a princess and had to keep up the image of being totally and completely unaffected by anything, she had to beat up on her poor defenseless servants just to relieve herself from her agitated state.

That couldn't be further from the truth. She thought, grinning and giggling as Warren reached the "fight back" stage where he would begin to bite and hit Sorcha's arms aggressively. _The only reason he thinks that is because I usually fight with him after I've had one of my huge arguments with Albert._ And sure enough, there came the first bite, to which Sorcha yelped and elbowed his nose in a wild attempt to free her other arm from his teeth. _It's not that I fight with him because I'm in need of tension-relief. I fight with him because after I yell at Albert a bit, he sends me to my room and so I have nothing else to do but… fight with Warren._

After a few minutes, Sorcha heard a light knocking on her door. _Ha! There's no way I'm getting up and opening that door! That would be like LETTING Warren win! Not gonna happen!_

"Come in!" She called just as Warren's sharp teeth finally freed her arm. _Gotta end it soon…_ "WARREN!" She squealed when he kicked his legs frenziedly and grabbed hold of her thick, black braid. _Owie! Not my hair! That… that hurts!!_

"Ahem." She heard from the other side of the room. _Oh yeah… I said, "come in," didn't I?_

Oh well, can't win all the time. She swatted at Warren's right arm a few more times before she said, "Let go! You win, you win! Let go!"

Warren grinned as he released her hair and she slid off of him and onto the softly carpeted floor. "I'm gonna go bald at a very young age," she accused the boy who still lay on the bed, "and I'm going to blame you, Warren."

Warren laughed and lugged his long legs over the side of the bed, his feet landing on Sorcha's back as she moved to stand up. "Ha… Oops." He laughed and jumped in the other direction. "Well, Sorchy, I'm gonna go get some sleep so I'm not too TIRED in the morning."

Sorcha growled and stood up quickly, shoving him in the direction of the door. "You already knew! I'll get you again you little twerp!" Warren laughed and did a mock-scared run out of the room.

Now, who's bugging me? The princess thought as she grabbed a black dress robe off of her end table and turned to face her new guests, pulling on the cloak.

"Aha! It's just you, Alby!" She exclaimed, skipping forward a few steps before pausing wearily. "You're not here to lecture me on Albert's behalf are you?"

Albus smiled and shook his head. "No, Sorcha. I'm here to talk about the potions tutor I promised you."

Sorcha's eyes brightened and she finally realized that Dumbledore hadn't come to visit her alone. _Oh no, he's brought the rude boy with him! What does he need to be here for?_

"I believe you two have already met, seeing as how you were seated next to each other at dinner." Dumbledore said as he gestured from Sorcha to the black-haired boy. He smiled at Sorcha. "He's considerably well at potions, so he'll be tutoring you. It isn't late right now, so you may have your first session tonight."

Stepping towards the door, he nodded to each of the persons. "I'm sorry I can't stay, there's some things I must do. Goodnight." And with that he left the room swiftly, closing the door behind him.

Oh thanks Albus. Just leave me in here with some guy I don't even know. Sorcha sighed and turned back to the boy, who just stood there, looking around the room. _At least I already know this guy's annoyed with me. No point in making buddies now! But it should be fun to tease and torture him…_

"Sit down over there at the table and I'll go get my books." Sorcha commanded and turned to sift through her pile of carelessly thrown books to search for the one on potions. _Why does everything I say always come out as an order? That's so annoying!_

As she sat back down next to the black haired boy, her textbook in her lap, she saw him look away suddenly and close his eyes tightly. _Umm… Problem much?_ "Are you alright?" She asked, trying to sound genuinely concerned.

"Fine." He mumbled. _What is WRONG with him?!_

"So, what's your name anyway?" Sorcha asked, trying to get him to look at her. _Cool. I've known him all of maybe three hours and already I can find little ways to amuse myself when he's around._ "You must already know my name after Albert belted it out at the top of his lungs at dinner."

He shrugged, but didn't say anything. Sorcha sighed. "What. Is. Your. Name." She said slowly and about six octaves higher.

"Severus Snape." He breathed. _SSSssssss… Reminds me of a sssssnake._

"Good." _Err, did I just say, "good," as in, "good, your name is Severus Snape"? Sheesh, I need to come up with some new material or else this is going to be the most boring tutoring experience I've ever had._

"I mean, 'good,' as in, 'good, now that we have names out of the way…'" Sorcha tried to correct herself. _Oh yeah, that made lots of sense, Sorcha._

Severus did a sort of grunt but didn't say anything. _You… Are … So… Boring!_ "So, how old are you, Severus?" She asked, procrastinating. _I refuse to discuss POTIONS on the first day I meet someone. I mean, we're gonna be stuck together for awhile, so we might as well get to know each other._ "Can I call you Severus? Or should I call you Snape? Or, Mr. Snape? You don't look that much older than me so Mr. would probably be awkward… Do you have a nickname? Seven, maybe? Maybe Double-S? Heh… That's a good one… 'Double-S'… You get it?"

Severus smirked briefly before he turned to face her. _There we go… Now I must come up with another mindless game…_ "It's Severus." He said. "Just Severus. And I'm twenty."

"Really?" Sorcha asked, shocked. "Me, I'm only nineteen. But my birthday's in… I don't know… but it's soon. I think." She stared off into space for a few moments before snapping back to reality.

"Anyway! See? Told you, you're not much older than me." She smiled. "So you must be fresh out of school!"

He nodded slowly, still looking at her eyes. _Lucky, you. You must've had tons of friends._ "What's it like?" She asked, leaning closer to him and half whispering her question.

He blinked, shocked. "Um…" He smirked again. _Smirky, smirky, smirky. I shall call you "Smirky" from this moment forward! Well, not to your face, of course. Or out loud… whatsoever… _"It's… school. You never went to school?"

Sorcha smiled and shook her head. "No. I've had schooling, sure. But it was from my own personal teachers, so I never had classmates. Well, unless you count Warren. But he was just there to bug me, he wasn't permitted to have class."

He looked away from her again. "Warren… that's…?"

"That guy that was in here earlier. The same guy from dinner. You know, the mud."

"Oh."

"Yup. He's a servant, I guess, but he's the only one my age that doesn't completely hate me, so… yeah."

"Oh."

"Did you like it?"

"Like what?"

"Hogwarts."

"That's my school."

"Yes… Did you like it there?" Sorcha asked again, rolling her eyes. _He's pretty dense for someone who's supposed to be a potion genius._

"I suppose. I was there for seven years."

"Um… So? I've been here for nineteen years and I hate it." _Crap._ Sorcha sighed. "I mean, I don't mean… Atlantis is… umm… I mean, I just… The thing is…" She shook her head in exasperation. "Oh never mind!"

"Okay."

"So… What are you doing here? On the island, I mean. You're here with Albus, but you're like, half the age of him and all the other guys he brought." She placed her book on top of the wooden table.

"It's business." Was his only reply.

"Oh." Sorcha rested her chin in hr palm and tapped her fingers against her cheek. "You're staying all year, too?" He nodded. "So… You're gonna be stuck tutoring me all year?" He nodded slowly again. _How's about you say more than just one-syllable words and actually help me keep this conversation going, Severus?_

"It's not so bad." Sorcha tried to reassure me.

He looked up from his hands. "What isn't?"

"I mean me. I'm not so bad. Tutoring me… It won't be so bad." He just stared at her, the "emotionless" look on his face again. _Smile. Or SMIRK! I thought you were a smirker! You're supposed to smirk meanly whenever I say something!_

"It could actually be fun." Sorcha supplied.

"I doubt that."

"Excuse me?" _How dare he? He can't speak to me like that!_

"Never mind."

Sorcha shook her head, scooting closer to him. "No. Why would you say that? I want to know."

He sighed and looked away again. "I said never mind."

"And I said no. Come on, I'm not gonna hit you or anything. I just want to know why you would say that." _Just answer the question you bonehead._

"It doesn't matter."

Sorcha frowned and tapped the table with her fingernails. "Look at me." She said and waited until he looked up into her eyes hesitantly before she continued. "You and me," she said, pointing to him and then to herself. "We're gonna get along."

He smirked. _There it is! The smirk! _"If you say so."

Sorcha grinned. "Oh, I'm not just saying it to be nice. We are going to get along." She tapped his hand lightly. "Otherwise, its gonna be one lone, miserable year."

He nodded and smiled slightly. "Alright then."

Sorcha nodded along with him and stood up, pulling her robe tighter around her. "I'm hungry. Let's go."

He scowled. "But-"

"Ah, yes." Sorcha said, glancing at her potion book with a faked-saddened expression. "Well, I can't work on an empty stomach." She looked back at Severus, a glint in her eye. "I refuse to. So… There you have it! I'm going to get some real food, and you're coming with me! So get up and get moving, Sevvy!"

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Severus silently followed Sorcha down a dark corridor, their footsteps making soft _tap taps_ on the marble floors. _She's procrastinating._ He gathered as she led him around another corner. _And she's trying to be friendly._

"Let's not walk in silence." Sorcha said suddenly. "These halls are scary, so start talking." _She's ACTUALLY scared?_

"Umm…" Was all Severus could manage to say. _Smooth._ "You can start." He suggested.

Sorcha turned around to watch him as they walked. _She's going to trip if she keeps walking backwards like that._ "Severus… Snape…" She said, raising an eyebrow as she said his name. _Why does she say my name like that? No one says my name like that. She keeps saying it. Over and over. It's almost as if she just wants to say it out loud. She's probably trying to press my buttons…_

"What's your favorite color?" She asked as she gracefully turned a corner. _Okay, so maybe she won't trip. Or walk into a wall. Yet._

"Black." He replied, trying not to stare at her eyes for too long. _She's like a damned child's toy. You don't really want to look, but you can't help it. And what's with her eyes? Why do they have to be so bright like that? She should wear sunglasses and save everyone the trouble of having to look at that blinding shade of blue._

"Black?" She asked, giggling. "Why? That's not even a real color! That's like saying 'clear' is your favorite color!"

I'm sure her favorite color is pink. Or at least something equally girly and… "What about you then?" He asked suddenly, unable to cease his thoughts from spilling out of his mouth.

She smiled and ran her fingers along one of the cement walls as she scuffed backwards, slowing down a little. "Umm… I guess green. Because of grass, you know."

"Grass?" _She IS crazy. She IS crazy. She IS crazy._

"Yeah!" She said, a grin spreading across her face. _Don't smile. It makes me want to smile. I don't really want to smile._ "You probably see grass all the time!" she continued. "But around here, the only grass we have is fake or imported. Grass doesn't grow on the island because it's so small and what grass used to be here was removed when the squares and homes where built. All we have is sand and asphalt."

You're kidding. "There must be grass on the island somewhere." Snape said disbelievingly. "It's a small island, but not THAT small."

Sorcha shook her head. "No grass. No green." She skipped backwards a few steps. "I like green."

And again, she has to prove that she is in fact, crazy. She IS crazy. "Okay."

"Alright! Next question!" She exclaimed, turning another corner with expertise. _She probably knows this entire castle by heart._ "Let's make it personal this time Mr. My-favorite-color-is-black." She pursed her lips and placed her forefinger over her mouth, wrinkling her face in the effort to think. _Don't laugh, Severus. You don't laugh. No reason to start now. But if you did laugh, you'd be laughing now. The facial expressions that girl makes… She IS crazy._

"Ooh!" She said, holding her hand up in the air in triumph. "I've got one capi-ton!" She folded her arms across her chest and smirked, a connivingly evil glint in her eyes. "Promise you'll never lie to me?"

Umm, no. "Sure, I promise to never lie to you." He replied, rolling his eyes when she twirled around and squealed in delight.

"Good!" She yipped, grinning. "I didn't know if you knew about my whole species thing, but I guess Albus told you."

Severus frowned. _What is she talking about?_ "What are you talking about?"

"The promise, silly." She said, rolling her eyes and sticking out her tongue. "You know, once you make a promise to an Atlantian, you're bound to that promise for all of eternity and blah blah blah."

Severus stopped in his tracks. _No. No no no no no._ "What?!"


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Did you know that disclaimers are usually my favorite parts of fanfiction? (Well, next to the actual fic…) I'd just like to say, "No I do not own Harry Potter, don't sue me because you won't get anything except a rusty paperclip." (Seriously, that's all I have in my coin purse! I feel I may contract tetanus if I don't remove that thing soon!) --- (Kidding… Well, I mean, the rusty paperclip is there…. But I've had my shots… So…. Yeah…)

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"What do you mean, bound to that promise?" Severus questioned, clenching his fists together at his sides.

Sorcha sighed._ Honestly, this is one daft boy._ "Surely you know the difference between an Atlantian and a human?"

He shook his head, but soon learned that his words would deceive him. "You're all powerful in magic and don't use wands. And you're race is linked to the fall of Merlin many years ago." His eyes widened suddenly as he stared at her. "I wasn't going to say that last part! I didn't want to say that!"

Daft, daft, daft. "It doesn't matter what you wanted to say." She explained, smirking. _So, he didn't know about the promise curse._ "Once you start speaking, you tell the truth. Or… rather what you believe to be the truth."

She stepped towards him and placed a hand on his chest. "And my people had nothing to do with the fall of your precious Merlin. We honor his teachings and mourn his death just as much as the rest of the world. It's rumors like those that have kept us far away from the rest of civilization all these years." _Honestly, how could he believe that?_

He just stared at her and opened his mouth, but closed it quickly. She laughed and patted his chest, where her hand still rested. "You're a fast learner, Sevvy! I see you've stumbled across the knowledge of not speaking whatsoever! That is, in fact, the only way to get around the spell." _It took Albus about a year to figure that one out…_

He just stared at her, horrified. _Maybe I shouldn't have made him promise?_ "Oh come on, Sev!" She exclaimed, squeezing his nose. _Oh, dear me… Oily skin much? Whatever. It's genetics I suppose. He didn't choose to be a walking grease pool._

"It's not so bad!" She protested, trying to get him to look up from the floor, where his gaze had seemed fixed for almost the entire time she had been standing within two feet of him. "You're never going to speak again now? Are you?"

Oh don't be a baby about it! Just suck it up! Telling the truth isn't that… Oh, do speak to me! Ugh!

"Severus Snape." She said, clasping the sides of his face, forcing him to look her in the eye. "Don't have a fit over this. You're stuck with it. There's no way around this… that I'm willing to try, that is."

His eyebrows raised and she shook her head. "It might not even be true! And even if it was, it's out of the question, so drop it." _Don't you dare press further… How embarrassing would that be?_

"Fine." He whispered. _There you go…_

"Good." She smiled, and stepped away from him. "And to make you feel better, I won't ask you any personal questions or anything… Since you didn't really know about the curse thing." She grinned and leaned a little closer. "And… I'll make you dinner!" She grabbed hold of his hand and pulled him in the direction of a small, white door. "To the kitchens!"

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I believe I may despise her more than Sirius Black. Severus thought, following Sorcha silently and struggling to free his hand from her deathly grip. _Of course she knew I didn't know about that wretched promise curse. If I had, I wouldn't have promised._

"Everyone's gone to their quarters." He heard her say as she released his hand and opened a wooden cabinet.

Great. Not only am I bound to your silly promise, but also I'm going to have to starve. My life is doomed to be one of complete misery and horror. Recently thanks to you, Princess Sorcha. He suddenly felt her hand on his back. _Whoa._

Turning around suddenly, he grabbed hold of her hand and held it tightly in the air. Her eyes widened in terror and then she scowled, trying to free herself. "I was just trying to get your attention! I called your name three times and you were just staring off into space!" She hissed. "You don't have to be so spastic!"

He let go of her hand and watched as she stepped away slowly, rubbing it in pain. "Sorry." He whispered lowly. _Great. Now she'll run off and tell her father how I tried to kill her or something._

"Whatever." She said, turning away and grabbing a plate off of the counter. "Here." She thrust the plate in his direction. "Your food." And with that she turned around and walked briskly to the door. "You can go to your room when you're done." She called behind her. "I'll see you tomorrow. Same time."

Guess I screwed up a bit. Severus sat down on a rickety stool, setting the plate back on the counter and began to slowly eat the spaghetti the princess had made for him. _It's pretty good. I suppose they taught her how to cook…_

He sighed heavily. _I still have to tutor her. That'll be horrible._

He sat there for awhile after he had finished his "dinner," going over the night's events in his mind. His first impression of Sorcha wasn't far from his idea of her at the moment. Spoiled, pampered, and hot-tempered. _She is kind of pretty at times, though._ He remembered when she had rested her hand on his chest in the corridor just outside the kitchen. He recalled thinking about how he had never been that close to a girl as pretty as her in his life and had to stare at the floor steadily to avoid her piercing blue eyes. _She's a horrible person, no matter how beautiful._ He regretted holding onto her hand the way he had after she'd touched his back. _I got weird shivers. She deserved it. Sort of._

Sighing again and standing up, he abandoned the empty plate and exited the kitchens, making his way to the room he was given to inhabit for the year. "The year." He mumbled to himself. It was, indeed, turning out to be a horrible start to one long year.

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Sorcha lay on her bed sometime in the early morning in her nightgown, unable to sleep. Gazing at the ceiling forlornly, she sighed. _He is so weird._ She thought as she listened to the ocean's waves splashing against the docks outside her windows. _Really weird. I wonder why he's so uptight… Figures. I bet Albus stuck me with him on purpose because he's so serious and I'm so… not. He probably thinks that some of Severus's "maturity" will rub off on me. … Or maybe he thinks some of my good-natured humor will rub off on Severus._

She laughed out loud at that last thought, rolling onto her side and staring at the door. _We really shouldn't meet in my room. Maybe the music room? It should be quiet in there now that Mother has since moved on with her over-infatuation with the piano since Father died._

Lifting herself off of the bed and onto the floor, Sorcha clumsily made her way to the table, where her Potions book still lay. Grabbing a sheet of paper and a pen, she quickly scribbled a note to Severus.

"Severus,

Meet me in the Music Hall by the Far North Tower past the eighth corridor and over the Round Hill Gardens in the nineteenth courtyard. If you see Albus, please give him my apologies for skipping out on dinner and have him pass the message onto my mother.

Thank You,

Sorcha Eden"

She pulled her long black cloak over her nightgown and held it closely around her. _And if I get caught in the halls… Excuse is: Can't sleep. Simple as that._

Minutes later, she stood outside her bedroom door, pinning the note to it. Making sure it was securely in place, she pulled the black hood of her robe over her head and made her way down the hall, in the opposite direction she had walked with Severus a few hours earlier.

I need a nice long walk to clear my mind… I haven't been much for sleeping lately, I suppose. Not sure why… Maybe I'm still hungry… What was that? Oh. My stomach just growled. Yes, I'm still hungry. No time to go to the kitchens now, though. I'll eat when I arrive in town. Maybe I'll stop in at Warren's old house? Visit his mum a bit? Maybe not… Maybe I'll just hang out at the beach for awhile? I could use a good swim… I've got all day! At least until Potions tutoring…

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After seeing her note, Severus sighed in relief. _Of course. Now you let everyone know that you're just out being a spoiled little teenager and not dead somewhere, like your mother was going on about all dinner. "Where's Sorcha? Has anyone seen Sorcha?" I was about to throw my potato at the woman._

He made his way quickly down to the Music Hall, having to ask a few servants where to go along the way. _Could her directions be more confusing? I feel like my first day at Hogwarts all over again. Let's just hope she's ready to actually get some work done this time… instead of goofing off like the loony she is and procrastinating to the point of utter annoyance._

He rapped sharply at the door to the Music Hall before opening the door, out of patience. It had taken him a full hour to make his way to the room, and now he was about ready to strangle the dark-haired princess in complete aggravation and exhaustion.

"Over here!" He heard her voice from behind a large piano. He walked around the baby grand and stood next to the small round table where Sorcha was seated, smiling up at him. "Let me guess… Far-too baked potatoes and blue-instead-of-green peas? Of course there was the usual funny looking meat… What was it tonight? Ham? Turkey? Or maybe it was fish… Mother has been distributing signs of the usual I'm-about-to-go-on-a-health-food-craze symptoms."

I'll never win with this girl. "It was fish." He said, sitting down and placing a few potion supplies on the table. "But no, there weren't any peas." _Blue-instead-of-green?_

"Drat!" She said, snapping her fingers and grinning. She tapped her potion textbook, which lay unopened in front of her. "Well, let's get to work, Snape-Snippety-Snape-Snape-Snape!"

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The next few weeks went by fairly quickly. Sorcha disobediently defied her mother's requests to eat dinner with the family and guests and ate at the beach or the Far North Tower every night. She stayed out of the castle most of the day and went for extremely long walks to "clear her mind." Simply put, she was still having trouble sleeping.

She sat in the Music Hall, nibbling on a corndog, when Severus came in. _I feel in a happy mood! Watch your back, Smirky!_

"Let's get to work." He mumbled tiredly as he sat down. _No… I have a better idea…_

"No." She said simply. He looked sharply at her and she grinned again. "I don't want to. We've been doing nothing but studying for the past three weeks!" _Whoa. Did I hear a hint of major whine in my voice?_

"I don't want to-- I need to do something other than tutor you before I impale myself on a spoon." He said flatly.

There was complete silence before Severus's eyes widened slowly and he turned away quickly, muttering under his breath. _Impale yourself on a spoon? Potions is boring, yes… I understand completely dear Smirky._

"Well, then." Sorcha said, standing up and grabbing onto Severus's arm. "Let's go find something to do. I already have a few things in mind! Oh but don't worry… They don't involve spoons whatsoever."

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"Oh, don't have a hernia, Severus!" Sorcha exclaimed, grinning and leaning over his shoulder from behind. She glanced at their reflections in the mirror before them. "You know you look good!"

He shrugged, his brows wrinkling as he stared at his reflection. Sorcha's idea of "something to do" was to give Severus a "make-over." He slowly reached his hand up to his hair, which was cut short and seemed slightly fluffy. His skin was no longer disgustingly oily since the princess had given him a massive scrub-down with an unknown substance.

Sorcha laughed and ruffled his hair some more. "You can keep the shampoo and face-wash I used on you. It's some special thing that an old potions master made back when my father was still alive."

He watched her face in the mirror as she began to stare off into nothing. _She always gets like that when someone talks about her father. Maybe they were close…_ "I don't think I need-" he began when he suddenly felt the now familiar feeling he got when he was about to lie. "Thank you for making me look better."

Sorcha blinked slowly and laughed. She wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned down, looking at his reflection instead of himself. _She's so cold…_ "I don't want your thanks, Sevvy." She said teasingly. "You know I already thought you looked good. I helped you because I knew you thought that you didn't."

He didn't speak for a long time as she held him. _A selfless act of kindness. Why are you so horrifically rude one minute and then so damned kind the next? I'm not some silly schoolboy who likes being kept in suspense! I hate that you're so unpredictable. And I hate that you're so smart, except in potion. And I hate even more that you're horrible at my favorite pastime. And I hate that you're the most beautiful person I've ever known. And I hate that you're a foreign princess. And I hate that you're practically hugging me right now. I don't need a hug. Am I crying? No, I don't cry! Just get your cold hands off of me! And another thing! Why are you so COLD?! It's unnatural, you freak! Every time I'm near you I feel all uncomfortably warm, and then there's you as cold as ice! What's your problem? Stop hugging me!_

"You're thinking." She whispered, snapping Severus back to reality. She sighed and he felt her breath on his skin, making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. _Don't do that, woman!_ "I wonder what you're thinking of." She said softly. _Well, I'm not going to tell you._ "You haven't spoken to me in anything but potion-talk, which is like a foreign language to me, for the past couple of weeks." She pulled away from him and moved to stand next to his chair, leaning against the bureau where all the combs and hair products lay. "Are you still angry about that promise thing? I said I was sorry, didn't I?"

"I can't speak without having to think first. I have to carefully plan my words so that I'm not lying, but not telling the truth either." He said, not looking at her anymore. _Like that. That took a lot of thought._

"You don't have to lie, you know." She said quietly. "It's thoughts like those that made the ancient ones place that curse upon their own people. If everyone had just been truthful to begin with, there wouldn't be any worry about being able to promise something."

He looked back up at her, only to find that she already had her gaze fixed defiantly on him. "Curse?" he questioned sarcastically.

"Yes, curse." She spat at him, rolling her eyes. "Contrary to rumor, I do not get off on not being able to have the true word of anyone in my father's kingdom." She stared at him, a serious expression on her face. "Everyone here knows of the curse. They never promise me a thing. It used to affect all of us… But now it only works with the royal family… They say it's because our blood is pure and strong…"

"I thought you didn't think of King Albert as your father."

"I don't. I was talking about my father. It's still his kingdom until the day my mother dies… I knew there was a possibility you hadn't heard of the curse when I met you. But I hoped you hadn't."

"You tricked me, then."

"Sort of. I truly thought that Albus would've told you of the curse. Especially since he suggested you tutor me… And since he knows how I am… Mischievous, he calls it."

"You keep calling it a curse. How can it be a curse if you can control people by tricking them into doing as you wish?"

"It makes people fear me. They respected my father because he had been king. It takes a great deal to be a king here… They trusted him, as they trusted all the kings of the past. Over time, the curse on my father was broken between him and his people. It wasn't broken between he and my mother, though."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"It has everything to do with everything. She made him promise something… And it killed him. Two months later she was married to Albert… I don't care what you or anyone else calls it. To me, it will always be a curse."

Severus frowned as her face filled with grief. "How did he die?"

"She stopped loving him." Sorcha replied, as her eyes became moist. "She tricked him into promising that he would die if she ever stopped loving him. And she… she…" Now the tears were dripping freely down her face, but she didn't struggle to contain them or wipe them away. "I was there. He just… fell." She sobbed. "He wouldn't move! He wouldn't move and she didn't care! She knew! She knew and she could've stopped it, if only she'd just freed him from his obligation to that stupid, stupid promise!"

Severus just stared at her as she cried, unsure of what to say or do. Her whole body began to shake and her words became jumbled together so that he had no idea what she was saying anymore. He wanted her to stop crying, but he couldn't move as she cried.

He looked away and stared at his hands in his lap, trying to drown out Sorcha's sobs with his own thoughts. It didn't work. All he could think of was that _Sorcha is crying_.

Suddenly, Severus heard the sound of the door opening and he held his breath. _Sorcha's crying._ Sorcha's unintelligible mumbles ceased abruptly as Severus heard a low growl come from the door.

"You foul foreigner! What in Merlin's name have you done to the princess?!"


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: See previous chappies… I don't feel like going into it right now… lol But this chapter is dedicated to my one and only reviewer for this fic! Yup, **written**, that's you!

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"I didn't do anything!" Severus protested as Warren pulled him out of the room and down the hall by his arm. "She was just! I didn't! Let me go you crazy git!"

Shit. Sorcha followed them, unsure of what to do. She tried to pull on Warren's free arm. "Warren! Stop it! What's your problem? Just let him go, you're acting like an insane person!"

"He's going into the dungeons!" Warren shouted at the top of his lungs as he opened a door and pulled Severus down a narrow flight of stairs. "Stay here, Sorcha!"

Sorcha paused in the hall. _Geez, Warren's a spaz. _She thought as she stood there. _He's never going to listen to me…_ She turned in the opposite direction and ran down the hall. _I've got to do something._

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"Where's Warren?"

"The bathhouse. He told me not to let anyone pass."

"Do you take orders from Warren or me?"

"You, ma'am."

"Then I demand that you allow me to pass."

"Yes, ma'am."

"You're dismissed."

"Yes, ma'am."

Severus rolled over onto his back and sat up slowly. He had heard Sorcha's voice. _Shouldn't she be here by now? It's her fault I got into this whole mess._ He heard footsteps on the cold stone floor and he stood up, stumbling over to the bars of his cell. "Sorcha!" He growled when she came into view.

She was wearing a long red, hooded robe and she scowled as she removed the hood from her hair, releasing a wild spill of long black curls. "Don't be mad, Severus. You've only been down here for about four hours." _Four hours? It seemed more like four days._

She sighed and moved closer to the bars, holding onto two of them and leaning forward. "I should leave you in here. It'll teach you a lesson to be nicer to people."

"I DIDN'T MAKE YOU CRY!" He bellowed.

She smirked. "That's not what I was talking about." She pulled out a ring of keys from the pocket of her robe and held onto one, not unlocking the cell yet. "You're a very rude man, for someone who's only twenty years old."

Just unlock the door… "I don't have time for your little lessons." He hissed angrily.

Sorcha unlocked the cell door and stepped inside, shutting it behind her in one swift move. _What…?_ She made sure the door locked automatically as she shut it and proceeded to throw the ring of keys across the room, outside the cell.

"What are you doing, you idiot?!" Severus exclaimed and pushed her aside to pull on the cell door frantically. It wouldn't budge.

He turned back to her and scowled menacingly. "Now I'll never get out of here, you insolent woman!"

"Oh, pull yourself together you spaz." She replied, rolling her eyes. "I have to talk to you!"

"I want out of here!" He shouted and grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her.

"Don't shout at me!" She yelled back as he shook her.

He stepped closer, his face only inches from hers. "I don't know what's wrong with you, Sorcha Edan! You're the strangest girl I've ever met!"

"I don't care!" She shrieked. "You're an inconsiderate, chauvinistic, pompous bastard!"

"I hate how your hair never stays still!" He retorted.

"I hate your nose!"

"You're short!"

"You have bad posture!"

"You have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen!"

Sorcha blinked slowly. "I have what?"

"I meant to say 'ugliest' but your wretched 'promise' screwed it all up."

"You think I have pretty eyes?"

"No—yes." He rolled his eyes at the effect the curse had on him.

"Thank… you." She mumbled slowly.

He sighed and looked her in the eye, his stomach flipping over as she looked back at him. "What did you need to speak to me about?" He whispered, his own voice seeming far away.

"I forget." She murmured, closing her eyes as he leaned forward to kiss her.

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Oh shit. Oh shit oh shit oh shit. I have got to be the stupidest person, like, ever. Stupid, stupid Sorcha. Bad Sorcha! Bad bad bad! Oh, what am I going to do? I'm going to be in so much trouble.

Sorcha was in her room, going through her closet, desperately searching for something to wear. She finally settled on a black long-sleeved tunic-shirt and a pair of black jeans. _Black is good. I am in mourning over my own death._ She pulled her thick hair into a loose bun and flopped down onto her bed carelessly.

My own death. She repeated in her mind. _A part of me is now dead. That's how mother described how it would be. I don't feel dead much, although I wish I were. She's going to kill me when she finds out. Perhaps she won't find out… No, I have to tell her. Suppose I didn't, though? I should talk to Severus first._

Severus. Like he'll be much help. I blame him entirely. It's all his fault that it happened. I didn't do anything. …Well, not much. Maybe I shouldn't have just left him like that while he was sleeping. I left the cell unlocked…

She rolled onto her side and hugged her blanket tightly. _I can still smell him. I smell like him now. Nice scent, mind you, but it's very distracting when I'm trying to come up with a plan. It's bad enough that Warren stopped me on the way here… At least he apologized for freaking out. Thank goodness I remembered to tell him that I already let Severus out of the dungeons. What if he had gone down there and Severus wasn't awake yet…? That would've been awkward._

She sat up and walked over to her mirror and recalled the night before. _I have to tell SOMEONE… Albus! Where's Albus? _She turned quickly and rushed out of her room in search of her old friend. _I can't still can't believe that Severus said he loved me…_

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"Well, that was very irresponsible of you."

Sorcha whirled around and jumped in surprise that at the unknown girl behind her. "Who are you?" She asked.

"The name's Lada Demetrius." The girl said, stepping forward, outstretching her hand to the princess.

Sorcha shook it tentatively and frowned slowly. "I've never seen you here before. Who are you?"

"I've just told you." The girl smiled and tucked her long platinum blonde hair behind her ear. "I came here because I need to speak with you. I've heard that you are familiar in the art of potions."

Sorcha chuckled and rolled her eyes. "I know how to make a potion if that's what you mean. But if you came all the way here just to ask me to make a potion for you, then you've been misinformed. I'm more likely to blow up all of Atlantis than make a potion that actually works."

"It's called a Selvagem potion." Lada said, pulling a small brown pouch out of her pocket. "And I need you to make it for me. Right away."

Sorcha scowled. "I've got more important things to do, thank you. And I just said that—"

Suddenly, Lada was right inches away from Sorcha. "You will make this potion for me." She ordered.

Sorcha stared into the strange girl's eyes, unable to look away. She felt her own self-control slip away as she accepted the brown bag from her. "I'll make this potion for you."

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Severus walked into Dumbledore's bedroom, desperate to find the old man. "Dumbledore!" He called, looking around frantically.

"Looking for something, Severus?" He heard his former headmaster's voice from behind him.

Turning around, Severus exclaimed, "Dumbledore! I need to speak with you!"

"Sit down, sit down." Dumbledore said, his face cheerful face turning serious as he watched Severus sit down on a lounge chair and rub his head exasperatedly. "What's the trouble, Severus?" He asked, sitting down in a chair opposite his young friend.

"It's Sorcha!" Severus said, running his hands through his slightly fluffy hair as he told the professor everything he had to say, leaving out only what had happened the previous night.

Dumbledore stayed silent after Severus finished. When he finally spoke, he stood up. "I can't help you, Severus. All I can say is that you need to think about three very important things."

"What would those be?" He asked, frowning.

"One," Dumbledore began, "is that Sorcha is a princess of Atlantis. She is young, beautiful, and has made vows of chastity." He sighed and looked at Severus, concerned. "The second thing to think of is why you came to Atlantis in the first place. You're here to prepare yourself for the dangerous mission you're going to partake in next fall."

Severus nodded slowly, remembering the reason he had gone to Atlantis. "The third, headmaster?" He asked quietly. "What's the third thing?"

Dumbledore patted Severus's head the same way he used to do with Sorcha. "The last thing you need to think about, is how you feel. And how Sorcha feels."

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Sorcha rubbed her eyes and yawned loudly. She was walking down a long corridor when she realized that she could think properly again. _What happened? I was on my way to see Albus… And then… I don't remember…_

She shook her head and continued on down the hall. _Snap out of it, Sorcha. You're gonna drive yourself crazy over all this._

She heard footsteps behind her, but resolved that it was just a servant. She paused when she felt someone grab hold of her elbow and turned, surprised to find Severus standing there awkwardly. "Oh. Uh. Hi." She stammered.

"Let's talk." He suggested. She nodded slowly as he pulled he down the hall. "Let's eat first."

Sorcha followed Severus silently down the hall, his hand still holding onto her arm. _Eat? Is it time for dinner already? That's strange._

When they reached the Dining Hall, the table was filled with all the same people as the first night Severus had been there. Severus immediately released Sorcha's arm and sat down quickly. Sorcha stood in the doorway nervously until her mother smiled and motioned for her to sit down.

She took her seat in the same place she had before, next to Severus. After a few short moments, the other guests began to converse, ignoring Sorcha without a second thought. _Well, thank you too._ She watched Severus out of the corner of her eye as he took a sip of wine, leaving his plate untouched.

"You're staring." He whispered, setting down his glass.

Sorcha sighed, feeling her cheeks warm as she blushed. She grabbed her napkin and proceeded to twist it in her lap. "I- I- I was just…" She rolled her eyes and turned to face Severus, whispering so that no one else would hear her. "Who have you told?" She demanded to know.

He smirked. _Smirky, don't smirk, Smirky. _"Dumbledore."

Sorcha choked on her own breath and clenched her fists to restrain herself from hitting Severus. "You did what?!"

Severus's face broke out into a small grin as he watched the girl before him. "I left out the part about last night." He said quietly.

You are unbelievable, you Smirky freak. "That's it?" She asked, trying to appear completely calm.

"That's it." He replied.

Sorcha looked him in the eye. "You wanted to talk." She stated. "Why not talk now? No one's listening to us."

He smirked and cleared his throat. "You know, Dumbledore told me about your vows."

Great. My chastity vows. Totally forgot about those up until now. That's just GREAT. "I… I guess… Oh shut up, Severus. Don't just sit there all content that I've done something I wasn't supposed to and you got to be the one to confront me about it. It's all your fault."

He chuckled softly. "My fault? As I recall-"

"Shut up about that would you?! Someone might hear you!" Sorcha hissed.

"You said no one was listening."

"Well, they aren't. But if you talk about it like that, they're bound to overhear something!"

"Ah. Well, you didn't specify."

"Stop that!"

"Stop what?"

"You're like, teasing me! It's so annoying."

"It's quite amusing, on the contrary."

"To you!"

"I believe so."

Sorcha rolled her eyes and started twirling her fork in her hand. "Why did you… say… what you said?"

"Why did I…? Oh. I don't know." He answered, moving the food around on the plate with his fork.

She dropped her fork and started tapping her fingernails on the table nervously. "Did you mean it?"

"I don't know."

"How can you 'not know?'"

"Why do you care?"

"Because I want to know!"

"And what about you? You said the same thing!"

"No I didn't."

"Yes you did."

Sorcha's incessant tapping on the table stopped immediately. "Did I?"

"Yes…"

"I…"

"You don't remember?"

"Sort of." She ran her hands through her hair. "I don't think I was focusing on what I was saying."

"Oh."

"Sorry."

"Okay."

She sighed. "It's all such a mess now." She mumbled. "I can't tell my mother. She'll have a fit if she finds out I've broken my vows."

"Maybe you should've thought about that before."

"Maybe I forgot, so shut up."

"Sure, sure." He smirked as he watched her start to twirl her napkin again.

"Don't tell anyone, please."

"Oh no, of course not. Warren would kill me."

"Oh shut up, he was just being a friend."

"By locking me up in a dungeon?"

"A friend to me, I mean."

"Obviously."

"Shut up."

"Right. Shutting up."

"I just don't want anyone to find out, is all."

"Understandable."

Sorcha sighed. _Is it just me, or has he decided to have a sense of humor today? It's kind of cute. No no NO! Not cute, Sorcha. Smirky is not cute. He's annoying. _"Is that all you were going to tell me? That Albus told you about my vows?"

"Hardly. He told me to think about them. Maybe I should've mentioned that it was a little late for that, though."

"I'm going to strangle you."

"I doubt that."

"Whatever. Is that all?" She asked impatiently.

"No. He also said something about my mission and… something else."

"Mission?"

"You don't know about it."

"I know I don't know. That's why I'm asking. What mission?"

"I'll tell you some other day. Not now."

"Fine. What was the something else?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"You said that Albus mentioned something else after that mission-thing."

"Oh. It was just… He doesn't know what happened."

"Uh. And?"

"And… He said I needed to think about how I feel." He scowled. "Wretched promise. I'll get you back for that." He muttered.

"Ah, well, I'd like to see you try." She teased.

"Shut up."

"So… How do you feel, Severus?"

He shrugged. "I guess I already told you."

Sorcha reached out and held his hand underneath the table. "Yeah, I guess I already told you, too."


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I happen to own various things (big, small, expensive, cheap, pretty, ugly, pretty ugly… lol). Sadly, Harry Potter is not one of them. Please do not sue me, as you won't get anything but two nickels and a rusty paperclip. (Yes, I have added ten measly cents to my coin purse. Hooray pour moi!)

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"We're gonna get caught one of these days."

"Maybe."

"Do you care?"

"Not really."

Sorcha smiled up at Severus and giggled. "You're different from when I first met you."

His brow wrinkled but he smirked. _Lovely smirk, Smirky. Keep up the good work._ "No I'm not."

"Yes you are! More… laid back…. And you actually have a sense of humor! I swear I heard you outright laugh yesterday and not just chuckle quietly! Laugh!" She protested in a know-it-all fashion.

He groaned and tickled her sides. "If I have then I blame you completely." He replied as she laughed hysterically, trying to free herself from his incessant tickles.

"Wait, wait, wait!" She exclaimed, pulling away from him. "I… Can't! Breathe!"

He chuckled as she caught her breath and then grinned when she suddenly hugged him. "It's almost November." She whispered into the shoulder of his shirt. _I can't believe the year is ending…_

"I know." He sighed.

She held him tighter then. "Maybe if we tell my mother, then you could stay and-"

"We've been over this, Sorcha. I can't."

"What if I go with you? I'm sure Dumbledore-"

"And what if something happens to your mother? You would abandon your people?"

"You would abandon me?!"

He kissed the top of her head. "We'll figure it out. There's still two more months."

She nodded and grinned up at him. "We're gonna procrastinate, huh? I'm good with that!"

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Sorcha studied her side profile in the mirror. _I am so fat._ She thought gloomily. _And what was with throwing up every day last week? That was just horrid… I wonder if it was something that I ate. I haven't eaten anything out of the ordinary. Or eaten too much. In fact, I think I've begun to eat less. All I've been doing is hanging out with Severus and-_

Sorcha paused as a wave of both nausea and fear came over her. _Oh… Gonna throw up… My goodness, it couldn't be what I think… No, that's just- Agh… Gonna vomit…_

She ran to her bathroom as fast as she could and fell to the floor, her whole body becoming weak. _This… Is… So… Gross…_

After flushing the toilet and brushing her teeth ferociously, Sorcha stared at her reflection in the mirror. _There's no way to know. Not unless I make a Fertility Potion. I wish I were like one of those human girls who could just tell by that stupid… thing. I forget what it's called… Some type of… cycle? _A thought suddenly struck her. _Warren! I'll ask Warren if his mother still has some!_

She made her way downstairs and into the servant's field outside, where all of the servant cottages were. Running straight into Warren's home without knocking, she breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that the small house was empty of its owners. _I'll just… check here…_ She thought as she rummaged through a cupboard of potions in the nearest bathroom. When her hand closed around the familiar green bottle that she had seen Warren joke with a dozen times, she shut the door tightly and locked it securely.

Okay, so… I just… Drink this, right? Oh… That's… Disgusting. Sorcha shuddered as the foul tasting green potion began to take effect. She pulled the bottom of her shirt up to a few inches above her belly button and stood there dumbly, waiting for the color to show. _I remember when Warren dared me to drink some three summers ago and my stomach turned a violent shade of orange. So, purple means… not pregnant, right? Any other color means…_

Her vision blurred as she watched her stomach begin to fade into a dark blue color. _Awe, shit._

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Tell him… Don't tell him… Tell him… Don't tell him…. Tell him… Don't tell him… Tell hi-

"Sorcha!" Severus cried as he walked into the room. _Right. Tell him. _He rushed over to her quickly, a stern look on his face. _Whoa. Does he already know? Why is he so serious?_

Might as well let him say what he has to say, first. Maybe when I tell him… He'll decide that he can't go! Or that he can't leave me behind, and so he'll take me with him! Yes, that's an idea! "What's wrong, Severus?" She asked concernedly.

"I… I've just spoken with Dumbledore… About my mission." He said shakily. _Mission? What mission? Oh, come on! Who cares? Get on with it so I can tell you that WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A BABY!_ "It turns out…" He continued, but then stopped to gaze at Sorcha's face sadly.

"Turns out what?" She asked.

"I… I am being dispatched earlier than originally planned, Sorcha." He said forlornly. _Dispatched? What are you talking about? Dispatched? What does dispatched mean, again? I need a dictionary… You're blocking the shelf, Severus. Get out of my way so I can find a dictionary._

"Sorcha?" He repeated her name when she stared off into space. "I'll be leaving soon. Tonight. I wish I could stay, really. But I can't just sit around and let-- Oh I wish you could come with me, too. It's too dangerous, though. Extremely dangerous." _Well, if it's so dangerous then what the hell are you doing? Planning on dying? That's not fair. What about me? What about this little thing in me? You can't just leave like that!_

He wiped a few tears off of her face that she didn't know had fallen. _I have to tell him before he goes. He has to know._ "I'll miss you." He whispered and hugged her gently.

I'll miss you too! No! Won't miss you! You're not going and that's that! "Please say something." He pleaded softly.

No. I can't tell you. It'll only ruin everything. I'll hold you back. Besides, it's not like I'm never going to see you again, right? You can come back anytime… I promise…

He held her face in his hands and kissed her forehead before looking her in the eyes. "I will never love anyone the way I love you." He stated. _Oh, that's so sweet…_ "I promise." _Ah… See that? I'm crying again… Oh. Dear me, was that a sob? I must be crying an awful lot… Doesn't seem to be phasing me much, except… Oh, no, Severus, don't cry! That's right, keep blinking a lot. It'll hold back the tears. Wish I'd have thought of that…_

"Say something… Please…" He murmured. _I wish I could… But I'm afraid if I so much as open my mouth, then all that will fly out is how much I want you to stay. And you can't stay… This is for the best…_

"Go." She managed to choke out. _Yes, please go before I change my mind._

Severus's next look was one of grief and guilt. "Sorcha, don't be like-" he started but Sorcha wouldn't let him finish.

"GET OUT!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

He backed away slowly, obviously hurt by her reaction. "Sorcha-"

Sorcha pushing him roughly towards the door cut him off. When they reached the doorway, he paused and glanced back at her. "Sorcha?" He whispered softly.

Suddenly, Sorcha was hugging him as tight as she could, wishing to never let go, and crying harder than she ever had in her life. _No. Have to go. For the best. You come back. Love. Promise._

In one swift move, she kissed him gently on the lips before shoving him violently out the door and into the hallway. She slammed the door shut, locking it tightly, and then proceeded to throw herself onto her bed and weep bitterly.

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Sorcha wiped her tear-stained face with the sleeve of her robe as she walked down the dark corridor to her mother's quarters. _He's gone. He's really gone. I'll never forget the look on his face yesterday when I pushed him into the hall… That was so horrible…_ She straightened up as she walked. _No matter! I will tell mother everything and she will understand. She was young once, too. And even though she doesn't love Father any longer, she did at one time, so she should understand. I seem to remember someone telling me that I was a completely and utterly unexpected pregnancy. I'll tell her and she'll comfort me and tell me that everything will be all right._

"Where are you headed?"

Sorcha whirled around at the unknown, and yet familiar voice. As she did, a young woman stepped out of the shadows and smirked. "Who are you?" Sorcha shrieked as the girl stepped forward.

"Call me an old friend." The platinum-blonde haired girl said as she walked towards the princess. "You don't remember me. But you will."

Sorcha suddenly felt chains wrap around her wrists and ankles. _What?!_ "What are you? Let me go!" She screamed loudly, praying that someone would hear her.

"Call me Lada." She heard the girl whisper as darkness swelled around her.

"Let me go!" Sorcha protested, hearing footsteps in the distance. _Someone's coming! If I can just stall this girl for a few seconds! _"MOTHER!" She yelled. "MOTHER! HELP ME! LET ME GO YOU FREAK! MOTHER!!!!!"

She stopped screaming when she realized that her voice seemed to fade around her. _No… What's happening?_ Her eyes closed slowly as a wave of exhaustion came over her and soon her whole world was nothing but darkness. Empty darkness.


	6. AN

ULTIMATE DISCLAIMER AND AUTHOR'S NOTES!

I know, I told you… "No more Author's Notes until the end of the fic!"

I didn't lie! I swear!

You know what that means, right?

Right!

THAT'S THE END OF THIS FIC!

I feel I have to clear up a few things now that it's all over! It took a lot out of me to not put my usual ::AN:: at the beginning and finish of each chapter! You should be PROUD! (I know I am!)

Anyway, one of the biggest things I'd like to say is:

YES, Snape was OOC (out-of-character… for those of you who don't know what OOC means…) for a LOT of this fic! I'm sorry! My only excuse is that HE WAS IN LOVE so gimme a break please! (lol) Also, I have decided to go by my own theory that Snape was never evil and that he has been a spy for Dumbledore the WHOLE time he's been a death eater. (yay!)

Another thing I forgot to mention is that this fic is supposed to take place about two or three years after Severus Snape has graduated from Hogwarts. (But you probably figured that out when he said he was 20 years old... teehee)

Another thing I'd like to say is that I KNOW DUMBLEDORE WOULD NEVER LEAVE HOGWARTS FOR A WHOLE YEAR! But, as this is my fic, I made him leave for a whole year. (Muahaha) Also, since I am one of those people that despises too much change to the HP Universe… I just thought I'd rub in that NONE of the Marauders are at Hogwarts anymore at the time of this fic, and obviously Harry and the gang aren't… So I feel that the "flow of the HP Universe" was not messed up too much by Dumbledore's absence at Hogwarts.

Thank you!

If there's anything else you don't get, tell me in your review and I will try to answer your questions here.

ALSO!!!

I bet your wondering why I would end my entire fic on a cliffhanger like that? (I am not an evil cliffhanger-addicted person! I swear!)

Oh hint oh HINT!

This is the end of this fic. The end of "Sorcha" (err… The fic, not the character. SHE'S NOT DEAD!)

This, as mentioned in my summary… if you remember, is a PREQUEL. Which means the story continues in my other fic, "It All Depends On How You Fly The Broom" (which is still on hold… lol…)

I am going to make another prequel too! I'm not sure if it will be about Sirius or Remus, but it will be about one of them! (yay! I get to be funny! It's hard to be funny when writing a fic about Severus… it's like… ARRRGGGG!!!)

Anyway, thanks very much for reading my fic!

Please review! I promise if you do, then I shall click on your name and check out your fics! (As of this moment I have only two reviewers… **written** and **randomblinx**. ---- **written** has three harry potter fics, I've only checked one though, but I'll check the others in like, a bit… ---- And **randomblinx** has NO fics… so, yes…)

And now for my ULTIMATE DISCLAIMER: I do not own HP or anything to do with it. I did, however, create Sorcha and her mother and Albert and Warren and Lada and "my" idea of Atlantis… But no, the HP Universe is not mine. Don't sue me. Please and Thank You.

Again, Please review!


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